1 . Every day people board planes,get on trains and ready themselves for an adventure. But what about the deep sea? Although it covers 70 percent of the Earth's surface,we hardly stop to think of it as a tourist destination. However, the travel industry has made great advancement in creating aquatic(水中的) hotspots.
From the luxury to the relatively modest,underwater resorts have been popping up in recent years. For those with a truly adventurous spirit and some money to spend,you can even rent your own submarine. Staffed with a captain,a personal chef and a butler(管家),Oliver’s Travels’ submarine,the Lovers Deep,is a unique getaway. For those looking for a slightly different experience,there is Jules'Undersea Lodge in Florida,US,named after Jules Verne,the author of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.
Other sectors of the emerging underwater tourism industry have brought a bit of art to the deep sea. According to the BBC,“there's a move to combine underwater tourism with art tourism to attract a new kind of traveler." Underwater museums and exhibits like the Molinere Underwater Sculpture Park in Grenada and Australia's Museum of Underwater Art allow visitors to see incredible sculptures in a truly magnificent atmosphere. Underwater archaeological(考古的)sites have also become popular destinations, such as the ones in Turkey, where people can visit sunken cities.
Exploring Earth's bodies of water has brought more awareness to the importance of protecting oceans and the animal life that calls them home. British sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor,whose artwork can be seen in multiple underwater attractions around the world, feels this is key. “Most people just see the surface of the ocean and it is hard to think of something so plain and enormous as fragile. We don't regard our oceans as sacred(神圣的)and we should.”
1. What does the underlined expression "popping up" in Paragraph 2 probably mean?| A．Appearing suddenly. | B．Changing constantly. |
| C．Working properly. | D．Moving unexpectedly. |
| A．To prove the power of art. |
| B．To explain a new travel rule. |
| C．To introduce a new travel trend. |
| D．To recommend popular destinations. |
| A．Neutral. | B．Supportive. |
| C．Cautious. | D．Disapproving. |
| A．Enormous resources are there for exploration in the ocean. |
| B．Underwater vacation has brought huge commercial benefits. |
| C．Artists consider it tough to protect underwater environment. |
| D．Underwater travel has a positive effect on ocean protection. |
2 . Germany’s top court has ruled that parts of the country’s 2019 climate (气候) action law must be changed because they don’t do a good job of protecting young people. The result is a big victory for the nine young people who started the law suing (诉讼).
The court suing stresses an important part of the climate change: The change will impact greatly on young people far more than the adults. That’s because the effects of earth warming will become more serious over time. As young people become adults, they’ll be left to deal with many problems that today’s adults have ignored. The government’s failure to plan carefully was putting their future lives in danger.
In 2019, Germany passed a new law, promising that the country would be carbon neutral (碳中和) by 2050. The law made a detailed plan of action until 2030. But the law didn’t have any specific rules or plans for climate actions that would be taken between 2031 and 2050.
Last Thursday, the judges of Germany’s highest court agreed with the young people. They said that not taking climate action made the basic rights of young people to a good future in danger.
The young people had challenged the government’s law in four specific areas. The judges didn’t agree with all of the challenges. But having the court support even a part of their case is seen as a big victory. Neubauer is one of the young people who sued. She works with the climate action group Fridays For Future. Ms. Neubauer said, “Climate protection is our basic right. This is a huge win for the climate movement. It changes a lot.”
The court has given the German government until the end of 2022 to fix the law. The climate law will now need to have a much more detailed plan for the actions that will be taken after 2030 to cut Germany’s pollution, allowing it to become carbon neutral by 2050. Germany’s government has said that it will quickly begin working to make the needed changes.
1. Why did the nine young people sue the Germany government?| A．They faced a higher rate of losing jobs. |
| B．The government refused their law suing. |
| C．The local court ruled against the climate law. |
| D．They weren’t satisfied with the climate action law. |
| A．The adults nowadays are put under pressure. |
| B．The climate change will influence the young. |
| C．Earth warming is becoming out of control. |
| D．Humans feel uncertain about the future. |
| A．Improve the present law. |
| B．Win people’s wide support. |
| C．Take strict punishment measures. |
| D．Achieve carbon neutral in advance. |
| A．Business. | B．Health. |
| C．Education. | D．Environment. |
3 . The Dog and the Joey
Leonie Allan lives in an area of Australia where people often find wildlife in their yards. One spring morning, Leonie took her dog Rex for a walk as usual. The walk was casual, but Rex was acting strangely afterward. As Leonie worked in the yard, Rex kept looking down on the road where they had taken their walk. Then he began standing very still, with his nose pointing toward what he wanted Leonie to notice.
Rex, a mixed breed (血统), is part “pointer”. Pointers are dogs that naturally stand very still and point with their entire body in the direction of wildlife they see or smell. They are trained not to hunt animals but simply to point to where they are. They are excellent in tracking and finding animals.
Leonie became worried when Rex left to investigate (调查). She thought he might have found something dangerous. She called the dog back. But when Rex returned, in his mouth he had a joey, a baby kangaroo about four months old. Picking up an animal was unusual behavior for Rex, since he hadn’t been trained to do so. Leonie was surprised that Rex had taken the joey gently by the neck and brought it to her. The baby joey didn’t appear to be afraid at all.
“He obviously sensed the baby kangaroo was still alive,” Leonie said, “and somehow had gently took it by the neck and brought it to me.”
Rex and the joey, which Leonie named Rex Jr., spent the afternoon playing together. “The joey was snuggling (依偎) up to him, jumping to him, and Rex was sniffing and licking him — it was quite sweet,” Leonie told the newspaper reporter.
Rex Jr. was bottle-fed and raised at a wildlife sanctuary (庇护所). A year and a half later, he was released back into the wild in an area where he could be monitored. Now Rex Jr. is part of a group of kangaroos, living a normal kangaroo life — thanks to Rex, a gentle dog that knows how to point.
1. The “pointer” gets its name because of its ability to ______.| A．discover wildlife | B．be gentle with wildlife |
| C．avoid dangerous situations | D．get along with other animals |
| A．she thought he might get lost |
| B．she knew he was tired after the walk |
| C．she did not want to stop working in her yard |
| D．she did not want Rex to put himself in danger |
| A．Sympathetic. | B．Curious. |
| C．Protective. | D．Respectful. |
4 . What to do if a fire starts?
Imagine it’s late at night. You hear the smoke detectors go off.
If a fire starts in your home, remember your escape plan and leave as quickly as possible.
●Call“Fire!”to warn everyone in your family.
●If you know where the fire is, close as many doors as possible between you and the fire.
●If you’re in bed, roll out of bed and onto the floor.
●.
●Look out and try to see the fire. If it is safe, leave the room. Remember to stay on the floor.
●If your clothes catch fire, stop immediately. Drop to the ground and roll.
●Call the fire department from outside and wait for help to arrive.
| A．Keep the following things in mind to make a safe escape. |
| B．Remember：Stop, drop and roll. |
| C．You smell smoke when you wake up. |
| D．You should leave the home immediately. |
| E．Call “Fire” to warn your family members. |
| F．Feel the entire surface of a door before you open it. |
| G．Crawl on the floor next to a wall. |
5 . Students at Beijing’ s Yucai High School have to be very careful when playing football on the school’ s field. That’ s because there is a 100- year-old tree growing in the middle of it. And keeping their eye on the ball too much can result in a painful collision.
Building a football field around a tree sounds pretty stupid. But the school had no choice. It’ s reported that there are historic buildings all around Yucai High School, and this was the only space that could be used for a football field. Before starting working on the field, the school did ask to have the tree moved and planted somewhere else. However, they were told that it was hundreds of years old, and that it was a national treasure.
Having it moved and planted somewhere else was too risky—they might damage or kill the tree. So they were 1eft with no choice but to build the field around it.
Interestingly, Yucai High School is built on the grounds of Beijing’s Royal Gardens of the Ming and Qing dynasties. A reporter for the Beijing News believes that the strangely- located tree is the oldest tree in the Chinese capital. That information has not been checked, but other people think the tree is only 100 years old.
Playing a serious game of football on this field cannot be very pleasant. The tree could“catch” the ball and change its direction from time to time. But the students have no choice but to train on the playground with the tree. Luckily, they can play on a different field in competitions with other schools.
1. If students play football on the school field,________.| A．they might run into a tree | B．they will have a good chance of winning |
| C．they will fall down more often | D．they can control the ball all the time |
| A．Because the tree was as old as the school. |
| B．Because the school could only use that place. |
| C．Because students in the school liked the tree. |
| D．Because the tree had something to do with the city’s history. |
| A．Because there was no other place for the tree. |
| B．Because it may have been dangerous for the tree and it might have died. |
| C．Because the tree was too big to be moved. |
| D．Because it was more meaningful to keep the tree where it was. |
| A．It’s the oldest tree in the Chinese capital. |
| B．It was planted in Ming Dynasty. |
| C．Some believe it is only one-hundred years old. |
| D．Students will play on another field to protect it. |
6 . The LEGO Group, whose plastic building toys are familiar to many people, has been working on making LEGO bricks out of recycled plastic. The bricks aren't ready yet, but the company says it's making progress.
Since roughly 1960, LEGO bricks have been made from ABS plastic which makes LEGO bricks very tough and gives them great clutch power so that the things users build don't fall apart easily. Sadly, ABS plastic can't really be recycled and it takes an extremely long time to break down.
However, since 2015, LEGO has been trying to make earth-friendly products. Making bricks from recycled materials could cut pollution from the company's bricks by 70%. But making bricks out of recycled plastic is challenging. The goal is to make bricks out of PET plastic, which is softer than ABS plastic and can be found in things like bottles and clothing. A recycled one-liter plastic bottle could make about ten 2×4 LEGO bricks. Over the past three years, the company has tested over 250 different ways of creating LEGO bricks from recycled plastic. A team of more than 150 people are working on the problem. Tim Brooks,who focuses on environmental responsibility at LEGO, says that experimenting and failing is “an important part of learning”.
Now, the company says they can make a good 2×4 brick from PET. One important step was finding a way of adding things to PET plastic to make it tougher and give it better clutch power like ABS. They will also work on shaping bricks into other forms and adding color to them-right now they are just white. The bricks will go through many different tests, which will take at least a year.
The company aims to make all their main products out of sustainable materials by the year 2030. “We know kids care about the environment and we want to tell them we're working on it.” said Mr. Brooks.
1. Which of the following can best describe LEGO bricks made from ABS plastic?| A．Strong and firm. |
| B．Recyclable and soft. |
| C．Cheap and familiar. |
| D．Popular and new. |
| A．Because the company wants to show that it's making progress. |
| B．Because this has always been LEGO's goal since its foundation. |
| C．Because using PET plastic bricks can reduce pollution to the earth. |
| D．Because PET plastic bricks are much softer and cheaper. |
| A．LEGO has found a way to make colorful PET plastic bricks. |
| B．It's not necessary to put things into PET plastic to make it tough. |
| C．A lot of tests have been carried out and there will be more tests. |
| D．Children keep asking the company to replace ABS plastic bricks. |
| A．LEGO becomes a leading toy company |
| B．LEGO works to make bricks from recycled plastic |
| C．LEGO recycles plastic toy bricks to protect the environment |
| D．LEGO makes the best of ABS plastic to reduce cost |
7 . Hiking in the mountains I met a young lady who wanted to pet my dog. While she played with him, I asked, “Do you have a dog of your own?” “He just died,” she said. She explained that as a child she got a little dog. They grew up together, went everywhere together and were best friends. She even took him to college though he was very old and couldn't get around well. And as he got worse, she stayed by him day and night thinking they would always be together.
But one day，while petting him, he growled（咆哮）and bit her hand. She was shocked. He never did that. How could he turn on her? Friends convinced her to put him to sleep. Unwillingly she did, but admitted that she hated herself ever since. “How could I kill my lifetime friend?” she sobbed.
“Suppose,” I said, “your dog was a genius! Suppose he knew you better than you know yourself. He didn't turn on you. You were too young to know about his getting old and needing to go. He knew you needed a helping hand to let him go. . . so he bit you. And it worked, didn't it?”
She was coming out of her deep sadness. I added, “Is it hard to imagine that dogs have late friends calling them to dog heaven? They never forget who they love. He is there. He still loves you more than ever. He knows you'll live a lot longer than he did.”
She was obviously happy now as she considered my words. We parted with a long hug and thanks. I'm pretty sure her dog was standing behind her, thanking me with his wagging tail and smiling face. Love is the highest kindness.
1. What do we know about the young lady?| A．She relied too much on her dog. |
| B．She missed her dog very much. |
| C．She wanted the author's dog. |
| D．She tried to forget her dog. |
| A．Attack. | B．Comfort. | C．Hate. | D．Leave. |
| A．Her dog wanted to live alone. |
| B．Her dog was too old to be a pet. |
| C．Her dog asked her to end his life. |
| D．Her dog would come back sooner or later. |
| A．Moved. | B．Disappointed. |
| C．Excited. | D．Satisfied. |
8 . My husband and I had just opened up a pet sitting business earlier that year. Our customers had slowly risen from three to thirty a month. We were busy through those hot summer months, driving between visits. Our work was strictly done at the pet owner’s home. It was almost too busy for the two of us, but we were making good money!
We asked pet owners new to our business to phone two weeks ahead so we had enough time to meet the owners and pets at their homes and make any following meetings before the owner leaves.
One day, we decided to take on a new customer just two days before they would leave. We met the family, filled in a form, and spent some time with their dog, Hercules. He playfully jumped on us and touched our hands and arms using his tongue. The family laughed as he did this, showing us that he was very loving.
Two days later I appeared at the house, alone. I came up to Hercules and said hello happily. I filled up his water bowl and cleaned any messes he made. Meanwhile, he was so lovely sitting beside. I thought this would be the good picture to send to the owners as usual. After the light and “click” sound went off, Hercules rushed at me. I didn’t know what had just happened until I noticed the drops of blood. I ran out and did the only thing — calling my husband.
Then I went to neighbors for help. My husband arrived after ten minutes. The helpful neighbor and my husband led Hercules back into his pen (圈). Then my husband and I took off to the hospital.
I must have looked like I was shot when I walked into the hospital. The nurses quickly moved me to a room. I asked the doctor in a weak but playful manner, “Am I going to die?” he replied, “Finally.”
1. According to the text, the author’s work was _________ .| A．tiring and dangerous | B．easy and free |
| C．well paid | D．done outdoors |
| A．Cleaning the customers’ house. |
| B．Walking the pets outside. |
| C．Bringing the pets to her own house. |
| D．Sending a photo of pets to the owners. |
| A．Hercules feared the sound and the flash |
| B．the author attacked Hercules first |
| C．Hercules was very hungry then |
| D．the author treated Hercules badly |
| A．anger | B．humor |
| C．carelessness | D．patience |
9 . With the largest population in the world, China has the most mouths to feed on the planet. Consequently,food waste is a great problem in China. It is reported that more than 6% — or 35 million kgs — of the country's total food production is lost before reaching consumers, in the household and warehouse storage, transport and processing sectors. With an ever-growing population, it's imperative to deal with food waste in China.
Thankfully, policies covering food waste have been rapidly emerging in recent years. Since 2010, the Chinese government has selected 100 cities and encouraged them to explore alternative waste management systems. In 2016，China amended (修改) its Solid Waste Law to stop illegal dumping (倾倒) and promote recycling and reuse of waste, including food. Restaurants will soon be charged a fee for the amount of food waste they produce. And China is using a good food waste processing method called anaerobic digestion, a process that transforms organic waste into biogas, which can be used as energy, or turned into biofuel.
Moving forward, policymakers should consider loss and waste reduction to be as important as increasing production. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, the current policy system of agricultural subsidisation (补贴) mainly includes price guarantees and subsidies for crops, production materials, seeds and agricultural machinery,which leads to local governments focusing on crop production while paying little attention to the wastage in the supply chain. There should also be increased investment in the construction of new warehouses and special funds for storage, transport, and processing technologies.
If food waste were a country, it would be the third-largest emitting (排放)country in the world, generating about 8% of total greenhouse gas emissions. This issue is not location-specific, but an issue that affects every living thing on the planet and should therefore be seen as an essential area to take action in.
1. What does the underlined word “imperative”in paragraph 1 mean?| A．Impractical. | B．Hopeful. | C．Costly. | D．Urgent |
| A．It has been widely used in restaurants. |
| B．It is required by the Solid Waste Law. |
| C．It is eco-friendly to reuse food waste. |
| D．It has proved effective in 100 cities. |
| A．Food waste in the supply chain is ignored. |
| B．Prices of production materials go up. |
| C．Investment in the supply chain increases. |
| D．Food waste during crop production gets serious. |
| A．To promote the idea of recycling food waste. |
| B．To call for action against food waste. |
| C．To assess the consequences of food waste. |
| D．To discuss the reasons behind food waste. |
10 . Scientists have created a new app designed to identify dangerous mosquitoes based on sounds the insects make. The app, called Abuzz, is aimed at helping fight major diseases spread by mosquitoes.
Haripriya Vaidehi Narayanan is one of the researchers who helped develop the app. Narayanan told VOA that anyone with a mobile phone could use the app to identify mosquitoes. “If they see a mosquito around, they just take out their phone, open up the app, point their phone towards the mosquito and hit the record button,”she said. “Then, when the mosquito flaps its wings and starts flying around, it makes that noise, that annoying buzzing noise. That noise is what gets recorded by the Abuzz app.” she added.
Many diseases that mosquitoes carry do not have cures or vaccines. So, targeting the flying insects is the best way to control them. “The most important step is to know where the mosquitoes are,” Narayanan said.
Traditional methods for hunting mosquitoes are costly and can take a very long time. The process also requires labor-intensive trapping as well as trained scientists to identify the insects.
Manu Prakash is a professor of bioengineering at Stanford University and a lead investigator on the project. He says that out of about 3,500 different mosquito species, only about 40 are dangerous to humans. Prakash says the goal of the project was to find out whether the mosquitoes around a person's house are just an annoyance, or whether they are possibly dangerous.
When mosquitoes move their wings up and down, they produce buzzing sounds. But each kind of mosquito makes a slightly different buzzing noise. The app records these sounds. Users of the app can get an answer by recording as little as one or two seconds of the buzzing sound. The app compares this recording to a collection of other recordings. It then predicts which species of mosquito it is most likely to be.
By making use of mosquito information worldwide, the app can help build maps of where dangerous mosquitoes are. This can help scientists and health officials identify areas where disease is likely to break out and where to target mosquito control.
1. Why is it important to locate mosquitoes?| A．Because they are very small and hard to find. |
| B．Because diseases carried by them are a big problem. |
| C．Because mosquitoes flap their wings very quickly. |
| D．Because the buzzing noise of mosquitoes is annoying. |
| A．Compare it to a database and identify its species. |
| B．Make a somewhat different buzzing noise. |
| C．Release some chemicals to kill the mosquito. |
| D．Draw a map of the place where the mosquito was. |
| A．It can help people control the number of mosquitoes. |
| B．It can help people avoid some species of mosquitoes. |
| C．It can help predict where mosquito-carried diseases are most likely to occur. |
| D．It can help record the mosquito hiding places very quickly. |
| A．The Different Species of Mosquitoes in the World |
| B．New Ways to Fight Disease Caused by Mosquitoes |
| C．How to Identify Sounds Made by Different Mosquitoes |
| D．A New App That Can Identify Dangerous Mosquitoes |
